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Stromson — Helios Kharkiv: In the sky with diamonds (Season 1 Wrap Up)
Evidently whenever Darren goes out of town, it automatically means the rest of us get down right lazy about our updates (sorry Johnny)! I apologize for my tardiness in providing an update, and I have no excuse other that not being sufficiently motivated. Regardless, I’ve squashed my lethargy bug and the result is the much anticipated (hah!) second half of Helios Kharkiv’s first season! Let’s see how we managed…
Last time out we’d found ourselves sitting in a surprising second place on the table, but I had growing doubts about our ability to remain in that position. Truthfully (as you’re aware), I was secretly hoping for a slight slip down the table; still a top 5 finish but just not in the top 2 (who are promoted). Our very next outing following that post saw this happen (VIDEO TIME!):
Just in case you weren’t able to tell from the grainy video (or didn’t watch it), that loss saw us fall down to 4th place with 12 (I think) games played. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your point of view), that was the lowest we would ever fall this season. Following that Olexandriya match, our fixtures fell rather…favorably:
Whaaaaaaat!? I really just can’t believe it. Despite putting together a solid string of results the entire season, I was never convinced we were a dominant team, and I never went into a game expecting a win. We immediately bounced back into 2nd position and we never relinquished it:
Chornomorets ran away with the league (as they should’ve given their £13,500 wage budget and reputation), and we secured 2nd place with two games left to play. Despite my statements to the contrary, I couldn’t help but be a little proud of our accomplishment. The media were also quick to doll out their adulation:
Madness, madness I say! I wouldn’t have believed it at the beginning of the season, but against all odds we’ve been promoted! This ragged bunch of past-their-prime veterans and far-too-inexperienced youngsters banded together and pulled off a feat that teams with twice the wages weren’t able to accomplish. If ever there was an underdog story, this was it. We were the David to the Persha Liha’s Goliath, we were:
Finishing in 2nd place also had a rather pleasant (and very necessary) side effect:
Excellent! That was money well needed, and should go a long way toward helping us secure some new players. Due to the funky structure of the Ukrainian season, we have barely a month’s break before the next season begins. This isn’t a lot of time to build/overhaul a squad, but we’ll be frantically trying to do our best. We have but a single goal next year: survive. The media seem to agree with us on that point:
Yikes, I’m pretty sure those are the worst odds I’ve ever faced. Nonsense, I absolutely must prove them wrong! With your help, and some insanely lucky transfers, I’m convinced we’ll be able to mount a serious relegation battle next season. Next update will have transfer news and the first few games. Thanks for reading all!